The Polobubo (Tsekelewu) Cottage Hospital in Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State stands as a chilling monument to government neglect and systemic failure.
Despite a N596 million investment from Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL) and the Egbema-Gbaramatu Community Development Foundation (EGCDF), the hospital—intended to serve as a critical healthcare lifeline—remains closed and unequipped years after its handover to the Delta State Government in 2018.
President of the Polobubo (Tsekelewu) Bloc Communities, Paul Toruwei, issued a heartfelt statement decrying the continued inaction, urgently calling on Governor Sheriff Oborevwori to take immediate responsibility for what he described as an ongoing humanitarian crisis.
“The Polobubo Cottage Hospital today is a stark symbol of abandonment,” Toruwei stated. “Despite its noble origins, it has become a place where hope dies—where treatable illnesses become death sentences due to a complete lack of medical personnel, equipment, and care.”
According to Toruwei, hundreds of lives have been lost—particularly children, pregnant women, and the elderly—because of the hospital’s non-operational status. The community, he said, continues to pay a deadly price for the government’s failure to equip and manage the facility.
“This hospital was built, but it was never truly completed in purpose. Our people are dying from conditions that could have easily been treated. Help is not impossible—it’s simply being withheld.”
Polobubo, despite being home to major oil and gas activities involving companies such as Chevron, NPDC/Elcrest, Sahara Energy, and Conoil Nigeria Limited, remains shockingly deprived of basic healthcare infrastructure. Toruwei emphasized that this contradiction—between the region’s economic importance and its humanitarian neglect—exposes a serious failure in governance and social responsibility.
Repeated appeals to government authorities, he said, have gone unanswered. The hospital currently has no resident doctors, no nurses, no technicians, and no functioning medical equipment. Essential supplies are nearly non-existent.
“Each day that this hospital remains closed, lives are lost. The government’s silence is a form of complicity,” he said. “Polobubo is not a forgotten outpost—it is a vital economic hub that deserves dignity, healthcare, and protection.”
Toruwei is demanding that the Delta State government immediately deploy qualified healthcare professionals, upgrade the hospital’s facilities, and ensure sustainable funding to restore full operations.
He appealed directly to Governor Oborevwori: “Your Excellency, we remind you that the people of Polobubo have upheld their end of the social contract. They have enabled oil production and accepted the presence of corporate giants in their land. Now, it is your duty to honour your end—by protecting their right to life and access to healthcare.”
As the community mourns preventable deaths and faces daily health emergencies, Toruwei’s message is urgent and clear: “The time for neglect has passed. Let the Polobubo Cottage Hospital fulfill its purpose—to save lives, not be the reason they are lost.”
